The Seoul City government agrees with Hannan Consortium to build such facilities at Seonam Water Recycling Center, investing 17.2 billion won.
It will be the largest biogas-based cogeneration facility in the country when it is completed in September 2014.
The largest biogas-based cogeneration plant will be built by September 2014 at the Seonam Water Recycling Center in Seoul.
The Seoul City government said that it concluded an agreement with Seonam Bio Energy on June 27 for constructing a cogeneration plant by September 2014. Korea District Heating Corporation (KDHC) is the largest shareholder of Seonam Bio Energy.
As the second biogas-based cogeneration facility following the plant at Nanji Water Recycling Center, the cogeneration plant to be built at Seonam Water Recycling Center is the largest facility in power generation capacity. It is meaningful that it will generate electric power and heat using biogas (combustion gas) that is produced as by-product in process of treating sewage.
Under the arrangement, the Seoul City government will supply 52,000 cubic meters of biogas a day produced by Seonam Water Recycling Center to Hannan Consortium, and the Consortium will generate electric power and heat simultaneously after building 5.8MW (one 3MW generator and two 1.4MW generators) cogeneration facilities, investing 17.2 billion won.
Hannan Consortium will hold the management right of the cogeneration plant for 20 years, and the Consortium will generate 38,000MWh of power and 36,000Gcal of heat and supply them to 14,000 households. Through this project, the Seoul City government is expected to substitute import of 12,000TOE of fossil fuels and earn profit of 2.9 billion won in sales of gas a year.
The cogeneration facility installed at a water recycling center can maximize use of energy by generating power and heat using biogas that has been partly used as fuel for raising temperature of digestion tanks and unused surplus gas, while raising temperature of digestion tanks using waste heat produced in process of generating power. And in case the heat exceeds demand at the plant, it can be supplied to households through district heating pipes.
As a member of the Consortium, KDHC is expected to improve profitability by using sewage biogas as fuel instead of high-priced LNG, and it will be helpful for fulfilling obligatory renewable energy portfolio standard (RPS) allotment.
The Seoul City authority will install biogas-based cogeneration facilities underground of Seonam Water Recycling Center to prevent noise and build a public relations hall and experiencing hall above the ground to be used by citizens.
In addition to Nanji Water Recycling Center and Seonam Water Recycling Center, the Seoul City government plans to build biogas-based cogeneration and sewage heat generation facilities at other water treatment plants in Seoul, such as Jungrang Water Recycling Center and Tancheon Water Recycling Center.
Director General Kim Byeong-ha of Urban Safety Office at Seoul City government said, “The municipal government will reduce use of fossil fuels by actively developing renewable energies at water recycling centers, and will prepare for energy crisis and global warming by continuously increasing self-sufficiency rate of energy.”
Source : e2news
